Attorneys with Santa Clara University's Northern California Innocence Project Help to Free California Man in Prison for 12 Years.SANTA CLARA Santa Clara, city, Cuba Santa Clara (sän`tä klä`rä), city (1994 est. pop. 217,000), capital of Villa Clara prov., central Cuba. , Calif. -- After having spent almost 12 years in prison for a crime that he did not commit, Kenneth Foley emerged a free man after the Santa Clara Superior court reversed his conviction for the armed burglary of a truck. The Court had previously recalled his sentence. Superior Court Judge Ray Cunningham Raymond Lee "Ray" Cunningham (January 17 1905 - July 30 2005) was a third baseman in Major League Baseball who played for the St. Louis Cardinals in 1931 and 1932. He batted and threw right handed. A native of Mesquite, Texas, Cunningham played briefly for the St. granted a writ of habeas corpus Noun 1. writ of habeas corpus - a writ ordering a prisoner to be brought before a judge habeas corpus judicial writ, writ - (law) a legal document issued by a court or judicial officer , filed by the Northern California Innocence Projects that vacated Foley's conviction. In 1995 Foley was convicted of burglary in the second degree for the alleged armed burglary of a truck in Santa Clara County. He was sentenced to 25 years to life. Foley maintained his innocence and claimed that the victim mistakenly identified him as one of the burglars. At Foley's trial, Luke Gaumond testified he was the actual burglar. But the prosecution attacked Gaumond's credibility as a witness and Foley was ultimately convicted. For the past 10 years, Luke Gaumond has continued to try and help Foley, by contacting his trial counsel, who in turn contacted the District Attorney's office. The District Attorney's office re-investigated the case and agreed to have Foley re-sentenced. The Northern California Innocence Project at Santa Clara University School of Law The Santa Clara University School of Law is a private, non-profit law school located in Santa Clara, California. It was founded in 1912 as a part of Santa Clara University, and is known for its diverse student body and excellent reputations in high tech and public service law. filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus on Foley's behalf, arguing that his entire conviction should be reversed, based upon newly discovered evidence NEWLY DISCOVERED EVIDENCE. That evidence which, after diligent search for it, was not discovered until after the trial of a cause. 2. In general a new trial will be granted on the ground that new, important, and material evidence has been discovered since the of Foley's innocence, the failure of the prosecution to turn over exculpatory exculpatory adj. applied to evidence which may justify or excuse an accused defendant's actions, and which will tend to show the defendant is not guilty or has no criminal intent. information, and the failure of defense counsel to fully investigate, resulting in Ineffective Assistance of Counsel Ineffective assistance of counsel is an issue raised in legal malpractice suits and in appeals in criminal cases where a criminal defendant asserts that their criminal conviction occurred because their attorney failed to properly defend the case. . In a document filed with the court, the District Attorney agreed that Foley's petition for writ of habeas corpus should be granted, saying they agreed that " a strong showing of actual innocence had been made." "We are glad that the hard work of the Northern California Innocence Project has helped Kenneth Foley regain his freedom," said Linda Starr, legal director of the Northern California Innocence Project at the Santa Clara University School of law. About the Northern California Innocence Project The Northern California Innocence Project, part of the National Innocence Network, is a clinical legal education and social justice program of the Santa Clara University School of Law, with a satellite office at Golden Gate University. The project provides free legal representation to prisoners seeking to prove their actual innocence. The only non-profit project of its kind in Northern California, the SCU-based project has received more than 500 requests for assistance from inmates in its first year. New advances in DNA DNA: see nucleic acid. DNA or deoxyribonucleic acid One of two types of nucleic acid (the other is RNA); a complex organic compound found in all living cells and many viruses. It is the chemical substance of genes. and forensic science The application of scientific knowledge and methodology to legal problems and criminal investigations. Sometimes called simply forensics, forensic science encompasses many different fields of science, including anthropology, biology, chemistry, engineering, genetics, have enabled inmates to demonstrate their actual innocence. Approximately 100 wrongfully convicted people have been freed from incarceration Confinement in a jail or prison; imprisonment. Police officers and other law enforcement officers are authorized by federal, state, and local lawmakers to arrest and confine persons suspected of crimes. The judicial system is authorized to confine persons convicted of crimes. in the United States through the work of the Innocence Project Network within the past decade. www.ncip.scu.edu About Santa Clara University Santa Clara University, a comprehensive Jesuit, Catholic university located 40 miles south of San Francisco in California's Silicon Valley, offers its 8,377 students rigorous undergraduate curricula in arts and sciences, business, and engineering, plus master's and law degrees and engineering Ph.D.s. Distinguished nationally by one of the highest graduation rates among all U.S. master's universities, California's oldest operating higher-education institution demonstrates faith-inspired values of ethics and social justice. For more information, see www.scu.edu. |
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